alcohol, what is acceptable
 

OK, to be quite honest, i am an alcoholic

I have been on the atkins diet for 5 days, and been sober

and i honestly cannot take it anymore

I need a drink, but also want to lose weight, what alcohol can i drink

I assume beer and wine would be out of the question

but what about scotch, vodka, gin???

i know no rum and cokes, but a scotch and soda or gin and tonic must be ok

please let me know, i will be drinking tonight and need guidance

please no moral or ethical shuns about my drinking problem, i am quite aware of it

the "problem" with alcohol is that your body must burn it before it can burn anything else. with that said ... i still drink on this diet but no excessively. here's the scoop...

Hard liquor - vodka, gin and the such have basically no carbs - HOWEVER, watch out with tonic as it is loaded with carbs though there is diet tonic out there but taste TERRIBLE to me. I don't know know about soda ... I tend to stick to vodka on the rocks (grey goose is very good) with a twist when i'm out drinking liquor.

dry wine has carbs but i seem to be ok with a couple of glasses a couple nights a week.

lite beer such as amstel has 5g carbs per bottle. that's what i drink when i'm out with my beer drinking buddines.

Yes, alcohol is converted to ketones more rapidly than fat, so the liver will use it as preferred fuel until it's used up. However, alcohol is also converted to acetaldehyde faster because of this preferred and more rapid metabolism. Acetaldehyde is the intoxicating product of alcohol metabolism. Because the process is happening faster by being in ketosis, you will get intoxicated faster too.

There's a few things you can do ... first, make sure you drink lots of water. No kidding ... this will stave off dehydration, plus will dilute the intoxicating effect a bit. Try alternating drinks .. so have alcohol, then a glass of water and so on. Another thing .. don't drink on an empty stomach .. make sure you eat protein and FAT .. this will help to slow the blast into your system so it happens at a steadier rate.

Good luck, and I hope the hangover demon stays away.

Doreen

A book you may be interested in is Potatoes Not Prozac. The author explains the correlation between alcoholism and sugar/carb addiction. The author advocates a lower or low-carb way of eating if you are overweight. It's a fascinating and illuminating read.

Karen

thanks, thats just what i needed to know